Medium ejection apparatus

Abstract

A medium ejection apparatus including: a placement mount on which media are placed; a medium-leading-edge position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium ejected toward the placement mount with reference to an ejection direction of the medium and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position; and a medium position control unit that controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performs a leading-edge restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are not in contact with each other.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A medium ejection apparatus comprising:
 a placement mount on which media are placed; 
 a medium-leading-edge position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the medium-leading-edge restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium ejected toward the placement mount with reference to an ejection direction of the medium and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position; and 
 a medium position control unit that controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performs a leading-edge restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of the media positioned under the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and not restricted by the medium-leading-edge position restriction part are not in contact with each other, and controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part does not perform the leading-edge restriction operation when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are in contact with each other. 
 
     
     
       2. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a medium-width position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the medium-width position restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium with reference to a width direction of the medium orthogonal to the ejection direction and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       3. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a placement-mount driver that lifts or lowers the placement mount, wherein 
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performs the leading-edge restriction operation while the placement-mount driver is lowering the placement mount so as to shift from a state in which the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are in contact with each other to a state in which the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are not in contact with each other. 
 
     
     
       4. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein
 on the basis of ejection medium information of a medium ejected toward the placement mount, the medium position control unit adjusts at least either the retracted position of the medium-leading-edge position restriction part or a timing at which the medium-leading-edge position restriction part starts to move from the retracted position to the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       5. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 an offset guide that performs, together with the medium-leading-edge position restriction part, an offset operation for offsetting a placement position of media on the placement mount forward or rearward in the ejection direction, wherein 
 in a case where a predetermined number of media have been ejected for the first time after the offset guide and the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performed the offset operation rearward in the ejection direction, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part does not perform the leading-edge restriction operation when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are in contact with each other. 
 
     
     
       6. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that a lower edge portion of an abutment surface thereof abutted by media is positioned higher when being located at the retracted position than when being located at the restriction position, and 
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part is not in contact with the upper surface while being located at a position other than the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       7. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the lower edge portion of the abutment surface is lowered from the retracted position while the medium-leading-edge position restriction part is moving from the retracted position to the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       8. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein
 when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are in contact with each other at the restriction position, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the lower edge portion of the abutment surface is positioned higher when being located at the retracted position than when being located at the restriction position, and when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are not in contact with each other at the restriction position, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the lower edge portion of the abutment surface is positioned at an equal height when being located at the retracted position and when being located at the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       9. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein
 on the basis of ejection medium information of a medium ejected toward the placement mount, the medium position control unit adjusts at least either the retracted position of the medium-leading-edge position restriction part or a timing at which the restriction part starts to move from the retracted position to the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       10. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 6 , further comprising:
 an offset guide that performs, together with the medium-leading-edge position restriction part, an offset operation for offsetting a placement position of media on the placement mount forward or rearward in an ejection direction in which media are ejected toward the placement mount, wherein 
 in a case where a predetermined number of media have been ejected for the first time after the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the offset guide performed the offset operation rearward in the ejection direction, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part is not in contact with the upper surface while being located at a position other than the restriction position. 
 
     
     
       11. The medium ejection apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-width position restriction part such that the medium-width position restriction part performs a width restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface are in contact with each other. 
 
     
     
       12. A medium ejection apparatus comprising:
 a placement mount on which media are placed; 
 a medium-leading-edge position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the medium-leading-edge restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium ejected toward the placement mount with reference to an ejection direction of the medium and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position; 
 a medium position control unit that controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performs a leading-edge restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are not in contact with each other, and controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part does not perform the leading-edge restriction operation when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are in contact with each other; and 
 a medium-width position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the medium-width position restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium with reference to a width direction of the medium orthogonal to the ejection direction and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position, wherein 
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-width position restriction part such that the medium-width position restriction part performs a width restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are in contact with each other. 
 
     
     
       13. A medium ejection apparatus comprising:
 a placement mount on which media are placed; 
 a medium-leading-edge position restriction part that moves between a restriction position at which the medium-leading-edge restriction part restricts a position of a leading edge portion of a medium ejected toward the placement mount with reference to an ejection direction of the medium and a retracted position retracted from the restriction position; and 
 a medium position control unit that controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part performs a leading-edge restriction operation of moving from the retracted position to the restriction position and moving from the restriction position to the retracted position when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are not in contact with each other, and controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part does not perform the leading-edge restriction operation when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium are in contact with each other, wherein 
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that a lower edge portion of an abutment surface thereof abutted by media is positioned higher when being located at the retracted position than when being located at the restriction position, 
 the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the medium-leading-edge position restriction part is not in contact with an upper surface of a medium placed on the placement mount while being located at a position other than the restriction position, and 
 when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and an upper surface of a medium placed on the placement mount are in contact with each other at the restriction position, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the lower edge portion of the abutment surface is positioned higher when being located at the retracted position than when being located at the restriction position, and when the medium-leading-edge position restriction part and the upper surface of the medium are not in contact with each other at the restriction position, the medium position control unit controls the medium-leading-edge position restriction part such that the lower edge portion of the abutment surface is positioned at an equal height when being located at the retracted position and when being located at the restriction position.